Lowering the cost of shipping with Parcel Select DDU

If you are looking to save money on shipping, start with a call to your shipping software provider to see what options they provide for Parcel Select Destination Delivery Unit (DDU). Chances are they have a few carrier / consolidator options that handle this service. What is Parcel Select DDU? It is a consolidation based product that offers a direct pickup from a 3rd party carrier / consolidator while relying on the U.S. Postal Service to provide final delivery to your customer. Why would you want a consolidated delivery service? Here are the pros and cons.

Pros

• Reduced shipping costs. Pricing is lower than a ground service where you hand the shipment direct to a USPS or FedEx. Shippers with a minimum of 50 domestic shipments per day can consolidate for big savings. How big? Let’s compare:
  • • A 9 ounce shipment going from Los Angeles to New York USPS First-Class Package Service ®: $4.09 GlobalPost Parcel Select DDU: $3.91 Savings Per Shipment: $0.18
    • A 4 pound shipment going from Los Angeles to New York USPS Priority Mail®: $8.58 GlobalPost Parcel Select DDU: $6.41 Savings Per Shipment: $2.17
• Saturday delivery included at no extra charge. Other carriers may charge a hefty surcharge to deliver packages on a Saturday. However, USPS via Parcel Select has no such delivery surcharge.
• Flexible pickups. When working with a consolidator handling Parcel Select DDU many will offer greater flexibility for pickup windows and even an end of day pickup time so you can continue selling and processing more orders through the day.
• Unified package tracking via USPS.com. While the shipping labels will actually contain two tracking numbers, one for your consolidator and another for USPS, you only have to provide the USPS tracking number to your customer. With this tracking number, the customer will be able to see the progress of the shipment, regardless if the package is in the possession of the consolidator or USPS.
• Integrated into most shipping softwares. Parcel Select DDU is broadly available in many popular shipping software applications. With GlobalPost we are available in ShipStation, Shipping Easy, ShipWorks, Endicia and Stamps.com

    Cons

• Delivery time is slower than ground service. The delivery time of Parcel Select DDU is typically greater than other ground and air services offered directly by USPS. This is because the shipments are consolidated in bulk, sorted and then transported and dropped off at the USPS branch nearest to the customer. USPS still has to perform the last mile for the shipment to be delivered. Below are a few examples of delivery times compared to Priority Mail® and First Class Package Service® which are roughly 1-3 day solutions.
• For shipments originating in the Houston area traveling to:
  • • Atlanta – 5 days Los Angeles – 6 days
    • San Francisco – 6 days
    • New York – 6 days
    • Miami – 7 days
• Variability of speed. Higher density areas will be more consistent while rural areas will see more fluctuation. Parcel Select DDU sorts are limited to drop locations that have enough volume to justify the drop. Lower volume destinations and rural areas will be consolidated and dropped further upstream and those type of drops could mean great swings in delivery times.
• Cannot ship outside of lower 48 U.S. states. Here you would need to ship directly through USPS.
• Must use your own boxes. USPS flat rate boxes and supplies are not available for Parcel Select DDU shipments.